Happy Birthday OU!

23 April 2019, 19:30 | Updated: 23 April 2019, 19:31

The Open University in Milton Keynes is celebrating its 50th anniversary today!

The Open University was the UK’s first and only distance learning university, founded on April 23rd 1969.

Today it is the largest UK university, with 174,000 students, and the only one to operate across all four nations. In the last 50 years a diverse community of 2 million students across 150 countries have come through its virtual doors, transforming lives across the world.

Professor Mary Kellett, Vice-Chancellor of The Open University said:

“Over the past fifty years, The Open University’s radical approach to opening up education for all has changed millions of lives, but our mission has stayed exactly the same: to be open to people, places, methods and ideas. With rapid changes to working patterns, new technologies and demographics, the need for the OU’s flexible approach to lifelong learning is greater than ever before. Like we have always been, we will continue to be open to all, whoever and wherever you are. If you need us, we are here to help you.”